Saturday, 19 October 2013

The Queen's Bribe - by Michelle Wyllie

I don’t usually do this but she made it
worth my while. It’s my job to ferry
people to and from the island to stay at the castle. Usually it’s mostly the local nobility but
last year we had an extra special visitor: Her Majesty, Mary Queen of
Scots. Rumour was she was with child and
had come for some rest. I could almost
believe that had it not been for the armed guards beside her.

Sarah, the maid, said
it was down to the Queen’s status she had guards. Perfectly possible for that to be true, I
suppose but these men didn’t look like protection guards. No, these men flanked the Queen like she was
a prisoner. Loch Leven Castle doesn’t
have anywhere to hold prisoners as far as I know.

‘You don’t hold
prisoners of her rank in a dungeon, John,’ Sarah told me at the time. So, a royal person wouldn’t be clamped in
chains and thrown into a dungeon. Her
Majesty’s accommodation would have to as luxurious as possible. Fine for her but I wouldn’t be so lucky if I
was caught. That standard of the Queen’s
new home was not my problem.

When she boarded the
boat, there wasn’t a man around who could keep their eyes off her. I’d heard so many stories of her beauty but
seeing her in person was something else again.
When she stood, she was as tall as any man. Certainly taller than me but I’m still a
growing lad. That’s what the captain
says anyway. One day I’ll be as tall as
her, he said.

Life in the Castle
isn’t that bad. You’ve got a decent roof
over your head which is more than can be said about some of the poor folks in
town. Not only that but the island has
some great views over the loch. If you
look ahead from the entrance to the castle, you can see out to Kinross or at
least the surrounding countryside. If
you go east you can see out towards Burleigh Castle. Perhaps Her Majesty would be happiest there
with Lord Burleigh for company. Nothing
wrong with Milnathort either. When she
gets a chance, Sarah goes there to see her family. At the backof the castle, you’ve got a braw
view towards Scotlandwell. Strange name
for a village, isn’t it?

According to the women,
the Queen lost the twins she was rumoured to be carrying. Could be true but you can never believe
women’s gossip.

Over the course of her
stay, Her Majesty was also forced to surrender her throne to her little
son. The only people I could see
benefitting from that arrangement were the ambitious nobles who hate serving a
woman.

So, the Queen came to
me through one of her guards and passed me £20.
Would I take the Queen off the island?
Of course, I wasn’t going to be stupid enough to turn down a queen’s
ransom, was I? Fingers crossed we don’t
get caught.